The RSPCA has begun an investigation after more
than 300 animals were found crammed into a house in appalling conditions.

Inspectors discovered 352 animals at the property
in Cromer, Norfolk. Many of the 131 dogs, 48 cats, 80 rabbits, 86 guinea pigs,
three degus (an animal similar to a guinea pig), three chickens and a parrot
were in a poor condition.

It took a team of 30 people more than 16 hours to
clear the animals from the building. "This is one of the biggest
numbers of animals we have ever found at one location," said an RSPCA spokeswoman.

She said two people had been cautioned by the RSPCA
and vets were examining the animals. Some of them may have to be put down.

Officials said an investigation was under way and
inspectors were gathering evidence. The caution, made under the Animal Welfare
Act, amounted only to a warning that an investigation had begun and a criminal
prosecution could follow, the spokeswoman said.

The RSPCA has not given the exact location where
the animals were found because of possible criminal proceedings. It is too early
to say whether the animals will be rehomed.

The charity's inspectors had been called in by the
local authority, which had obtained a warrant to search the premises. The two
people who have been cautioned will be interviewed later and officials will
then decide whether to proceed with a prosecution.

One rabbit was found to be suffering from an eye
condition, while some of the dogs were showing signs of having been deprived
of food.

Tim Wass, an RSPCA superintendent, described the
address as "residential premises with some outbuildings".

He said: "We are currently assessing the condition
of the animals and some are likely to be put down. They are currently being
held and cared for at three different locations in East Anglia.

"Some of the animals are in excellent condition
- especially the young animals - and some are in a suffering state. They were
removed from appalling conditions which were squalid and unhygienic."
The animals range in age from puppies and kittens a few weeks old to elderly
pets.

He said staff were working hard to minimise their
suffering and he hoped to rehabilitate as many as possible.

The dogs were said to be all toy breeds, including
chinese crested dogs, hairy chinese crested dogs - commonly known as powder
puffs - and a breed called schipperke.

"The sad fact of the matter is we visited this
address several months ago and gave advice, but because we're dealing with legislation
which is nearly 100 years old that can either be heeded or ignored, and in this
case it was ignored," Mr Wass added.

Jackie Lines, manager of the Block Fen Animal Centre
in Wimblington, Cambridgeshire, where some of the animals are being cared, for
said: "The dogs were nervous and frightened when they arrived and it's
sad to see them squirrelling away their food and using it for later."

Update 9/1/05:
Two women have been charged with causing unnecessary suffering to more than
350 animals following a high-profile raid.

(Photo courtesy of the BBC - Mother and her pups)

The RSPCA confirmed that Elizabeth King, 53, and
Beryl Barker, 72, both of Broadwood Close, Trimingham, near Cromer, will appear
before magistrates later this month.

King faces 44 charges of causing unnecessary suffering
to 352 animals under the Protection of Animals Act.

It is the first time the two women have been officially
named by the authorities.

Sophie Wilkinson, for the RSPCA, said the charges
related to animal living conditions and not seeking veterinary treatment.

Supt Tim Wass said at the time that the raid was
the biggest in East Anglia and the Midlands, and a handful of animals had to
be put down.

All the rescued animals, apart from the rabbits,
have been re-homed following a “phenomenal” response from animal
lovers.

Hundreds of people from as far afield as Hertfordshire,
London and the South East flocked to the Block Fen Animal Centre, in March,
Cambridgeshire, to adopt the small breed dogs. The RSPCA had to turn many away
because of the high demand.

The two women will appear before Cromer Magistrates'
Court at 2.15pm on September 30. The case is anticipated to be adjourned following
a plea hearing.

Update 4/29/06:
A woman who kept more than 300 animals in "chaos", allowing many of
them to suffer, was banned from keeping animals for life - except for a few
dogs described as "her family".

Elizabeth King was sentenced for a string of cruelty
offences by Cromer magistrates who heard she and her friend Beryl Barker kept
the dogs, cats, rabbits and guinea pigs in often appalling conditions.

King was also sentenced for running a pet shop without
a licence in the centre of Cromer.

Magistrates heard a baffling array of cages, hutches,
pens and aviaries was found by RSPCA staff during a June raid on Water Tower
Farm in Trimingham, home to King and Barker.

Both defendants previously admitted six charges
each of causing unnecessary suffering to a sample of 21 animals. Barker was
sentenced in February, but King's sentence was held over because the unlicensed
pet shop charge had to be resolved in a trial at the end of March.

Prosecutor Jonathan Eales said animals were found
with cat flu, their eyes sealed with puss, with dental disease, discharge from
their noses and eyes and other illnesses. A video shown to the court showed
many of the animals were kept in cages with soiled bedding, with no water or
dirty water and, said Mr Eales, "living in their own excreta".

However Mr Eales said King had not only co-operated
with the RSPCA, but had never been guilty of "wanton, deliberate or malicious
cruelty".

Ann-Marie Gregory, defending King, said both women
had been unable to cope and "overwhelmed" with the number of animals
in their care.

"If the numbers are kept low, these ladies
have a great deal of experience. The RSPCA is supporting the fact they should
not be deprived of all animals. If you restrict the numbers they are fine. These
animals are her family."

Both the prosecution and defence said they wished
to support the idea of allowing King to keep the six dogs she has, while being
banned from keeping any other animals.

Magistrates told King she could keep the six dogs,
but when they died she would be allowed a maximum of two dogs. Other than these
animals, she would be banned from keeping animals for life.

She was banned from running a pet shop for 10 years.

They said King's previous convictions for animal
cruelty in 1992 and 1993 were being treated as "spent" because of
their age.

King was also sentenced to a total of 200 hours
of community work and told to pay £140 compensation to the RSPCA. This
figure was only a fraction of what the RSPCA had asked for because of the difficulty
King would have paying, including the fact she had recently been made bankrupt.